Friday: Productive day for Button and McLaren

Jenson Button (No. 22) – 5th and 7th

The Briton was pleased with his day even though everything isn’t perfect with his McLaren: « For us, it was quite a productive day. We suffered from graining with the super-softs, like in Canada, but the softs seemed good for our short and long stints. Our goal will be to make progress and, on the tracks that suit us less, not lose too much ground compared to the teams in front of us. It would also be nice to be able to compete with the teams that are ahead of us in the constructors’ championship. »

Button also believes that the drivers will need to address several things during the drivers’ briefing for the weekend to go well: « There will probably be a few points to discuss during the drivers’ briefing tonight. The pit entry at turn 8 is complicated; I actually tried to go around the outside of a driver who was pitting, but I went straight on because I was on the marbles. So that could be a point to study. Additionally, the exit of turn 8 needs to be analyzed – it seems faster to go with all four wheels outside the track, but it’s a bit more dangerous because you come to the end of the asphalt and have to get back on track before the start of the grass. »

Kevin Magnussen (No. 20) – 9th and 9th

The Dane really enjoys the layout of the Red Bull Ring and his McLaren allows him to take advantage of it: « It’s a really great circuit, with beautiful corners and interesting elevation changes. It’s exactly the kind of track I love: fast corners and big braking zones. And, to be honest, our car isn’t too bad on fast tracks – there are still a few little things to study for tomorrow, but it’s been a positive day. »

Magnussen knows there is still work to be done but remains confident: “We still need to study in detail the results of today’s aero tests – and we will have a better idea of where we are tomorrow – but the car seems good, so I am positive.”